


Nowhere's High Enough

by faithlethalhane



Category: Person of Interest (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, F/F
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-06-26
Updated: 2017-06-26
Packaged: 2018-11-19 06:10:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,501
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11307342
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/faithlethalhane/pseuds/faithlethalhane
Summary: Root and Shaw enter their junior year of high school with a lot more to worry about than course work and sports, but they're determined to survive it together.





	Nowhere's High Enough

Shaw shoved a handful of cereal into her mouth, tossing the box haphazardly onto the counter as she headed for the door.

“Sameen?” her mother called. “Where’s your backpack?”

She rolled her eyes spinning to face her mom while continuing to backpedal toward the door. “Don’t need one. Not yet. Maybe tomorrow.”

“What about papers?” She insisted. “You can’t lose everything on your first day!”

Scanning the area around her, Shaw quickly snatched an empty folder by the front hallway. “There. Useless syllabi holder, check.”

“What about lunch?” Her mother was now hurrying down the hall to keep up “What about gym clothes?”

“I have money,” Shaw assured, “and I’ve got clothes too.”

She yanked up her shirt to reveal a second one. “Gym’s first period this year. I’m fine, mum.”

“Will you stop running away from me for two seconds?” Her mother fussed, waving her hands toward herself until Shaw stepped into the hug. “Don’t get in any fights. Don’t skip class.”

Shaw’s groan was muffled by how far she was pressed against her mother’s chest.

“I love you, Sameen.”

“I know mum.”

She accepted the kiss on her head before running out the door. “I’ll be back at 2.”

She threw a wink over her shoulder before crossing the street. Her mother huffed. School didn’t get out until three.

…

Shaw got to homeroom a minute before the bell rang. Root was in her usual spot in the back corner, furthest from the windows and the door, buried deep in her codebook, as Shaw liked to call it. It was her book of computer code written out in illegible patterns, packed full into the margins with edits and re-edits. If the school allowed them personal laptops, her life would probably be so much simpler.

Shaw slid into the seat in front of her, putting her elbows on Root’s desk and tapping her arm once to get her attention.

“Did you miss me, nerd?”

Root looked up, slightly surprised, before a wide grin pulled the corners of her mouth up.

“Shaw!” she exclaimed.

Beneath her, Bear perked his head up at the familiar name. It was always so tempting to pet him, but Shaw knew better. “How’s my tough guy?” She asked him in her Bear-only cutesy voice.

Root beamed. “He’s great. Missed you this summer. You do a lot of traveling?”

Shaw nodded. “More than I expected. Mom surprised me with a trip to Iran.”

“That sounds beautiful.”

“You could say that. It was nice speaking Farsi to someone other than my mom.”

Root giggled. “You’re too rough on her,” she berated. “Can you imagine trying to raise you?”

Humming, Shaw nodded over-emphatically. “Yes, of course, when you put it like that.”

Root tried not to smirk.

“Enough about me,” Shaw waved her hand dismissively. “How was your summer? Do anything crazy? Go anywhere?”

Root looked down at her desk, scratching a formless shape with her pencil. “No. You know me. Boring shut-in. I stayed on my computer all summer.”

She looked disheartened. Shaw didn’t like that.

“I mean, if it’s what makes you happy, then that’s good right?”

Root didn’t look convinced. “Yeah.”

The bell rang, and Shaw turned in her chair to face forward.

Roll was called relatively easily. Shaw managed half a hand raise when her name came up, even with her head down on the desk.

“Samantha Thompson?”

A longer than necessary silence passed.

“Miss Thompson?”

Frowning, Shaw lifted her head, glancing behind her at Root, who was leaned so far into her notebook, her nose might’ve actually been touching the page.

Shaw cleared her throat and nudged Root’s desk a little with her toe.

Root furrowed her brow and glanced up, confused. Shaw jerked her head toward the front of the class where the teacher was still standing, also confused.

“Miss Thompson?”

Root’s eyebrows narrowed further.

“Samantha?”

Her eyes flashed recognition, and a small “oh” escaped her breath as she shot her hand up.

“Present. Sorry…”

The teacher just smiled reassuringly before continuing on with the list.

The second bell rang and Root was up and to the door before Shaw could even say goodbye.

…

The first few classes went by as slowly as expected. Root was quiet in PE. Not a grumpy quiet, but definitely quiet. She was slumped down in the bleachers on the far edge of the class when Shaw walked in. She walked over and sat down, only to have Root flop her head down onto her shoulder.

She grumbled, but did not shrug Root off. She just sat still while the teacher went over the different units they would be covering over the year.

They separated for the rest of their morning classes after a few laps around the track.

Both Root and Shaw had the early lunch this semester, at the lovely hour of 11:30 in the morning. Shaw rubbed her eye with a sleeve covered hand as she shoved her tray forward with the other. The girl behind her was staring past her at Bear, and when Root turned to look at her, she definitely saw. Shaw stood up straighter and spread her arms out to block the view. “They should still be serving breakfast,” she muttered as she feigned a stretch.

Root smiled softly, but her embarrassment was still evident. The first week of class was always the worst for her.

“I’m serious,” Shaw continued. “I will riot.”

It earned her another small smile, brighter this time. Amused. “Tater tots are close to breakfast, right? Like…bite-sized hash browns?” Root offered.

Shaw rolled her eyes. “Yeah, if you’re not a potato snob.” She shoved her tray forward as she walked. “Which I am.”

At least it got Root to laugh.

Root paid for her food and picked up her tray, starting over toward their usual table. Shaw rummaged around in her pockets for the money she swore she had grabbed this morning.

Glancing back over her shoulder, Root frowned to see that Shaw wasn’t there.

“Shit,” Shaw mumbled, patting both her pants and sweatshirt pockets for the cash.

“I got it,” a gentle voice assured.

Shaw looked up to see Root typing her number into the keypad, followed by a paid verification flashing on the cash register.

She wanted to protest, but Root was already leaving again, and grumbling, she swiped her tray up and stormed after her.

“You don’t have to do that, you know.”

Root just grinned as she climbed onto the table bench.

“I did it for half a year last year. What’s one more time?”

Shaw sighed, staring down at the meal in question. “I promised you before we left for break that I was gonna pay for my own lunches.”

Root took a bite from her chicken sandwich and shrugged. “It’s no big, Sameen. Really.”

Shaw frowned. “It is. Your foster family can’t possibly be giving you enough money for two meals a day.”

Again, Root just shrugged as she set the food down and began rummaging through her bag.

“If you think about it, money is…completely made up.”

Shaw didn’t let her glare waver. “Don’t get philosophical on me.”

Root snickered and put her book on the table.

“Let me rephrase, then. Digital money is completely made up.”

Shaw’s eyes widened.

“No…You…you didn’t!”

Root bit her lip, trying to hide her smirk, but said nothing, opening her codebook.

“You hack your student account?”

Root looked up at Shaw for a pointed moment before looking back at her book.

“You are…something else.”

Root laughed. “Can we talk about something else, please? Something less accusatory?”

Shaw grinned. She looked around. This was nice. Familiar. What she had missed over the summer. She watched Root for a few moments. Her hair was its usual messy curls tumbling over her shoulders as she hunched and scribbled, pen in her right hand, sandwich in her left.

“Is it weird to sit here?”

Root’s brows furrowed as she continued to write. “Everyone else is in the same spots.”

Shaw shrugged. “But I mean, it’s lunch. It’s the one time we’re allowed to sit wherever we want. Shouldn’t we take advantage of that?”

Root looked up, surveying her surroundings. “I like this spot,” she admitted. “No one else sits here. We don’t get blinded by the sun.” She paused, using her sandwich as a stand in for a pointed finger as she gestured it toward Shaw. “It’s where I met you.”

Shaw nodded. She supposed she was right.

That _was_ good.

…

_“So can I, uhh, sit here?” she asked as quickly and nonchalantly as she could._

_The girl, however, just kept chewing thoughtfully on her sandwich, pouring over the book as though she had not spoken._

_“Listen, it’s the only table left, I’ll like, sit on the far side if you want.”_

_A frantic clicking startled her, and when she took a step back, she noticed the dog that had been curled up under the girl’s seat, now struggling on the linoleum tile to his feet hurriedly. He nudged the girl’s knee with his snout, and she frowned down at him, confused, before turning to look at Shaw._

_“Oh!” Her mouth opened slightly before she managed a flustered smile. “I’m sorry. You’re on my bad side.”_

_“I’m…sorry?” Shaw repeated uncertainly._

_“Bad side,” the girl said again, pointing to her right ear. “Deaf in this ear.”_

_Shaw blinked. “Oh, God, I’m…an idiot.” Immediately she walked over to the other side of the girl, straddling the lunch table bench. “I asked if I could sit here.”_

_The girl smiled brighter. “Of course! Is this your table? I wasn’t sure if there were predetermined territories.”_

_She laughed, “No, you sat just fine in No Man’s Land. It’s pretty quick to get used to high school, though, I promise.”_

_Root looked back to her lunch, much more at ease. “I’m not a freshman. I’m a transfer student. But I do appreciate the advice.”_

_Shaw frowned. “What year are you then?”_

_“Sophomore.”_

_“Me too!”_

_Surprised, Root looked back over at her, a small smile turning up the corners of her mouth. “Really? I don’t think we’ve had any classes together yet. I’d remember a face like yours.”_

_Root tried to hide her cringe. What in the hell was that?! ‘Remember a face like yours’, God, it’s like free crush advertising spewing out of your mouth._

_“Uhhhh,” Shaw held up an index finger to signal a pause as she started rummaging through her bag._

_Retrieving a schedule, she placed it in front of Root and smoothed out a few of the wrinkles._

_Root scanned the list, taking a bite out of her sandwich as she thought._

_“Well…” she said slowly, “we have lunch together.”_

_Shaw smirked. “Shocking.”_

_Her finger traced to the bottom of the list, hesitating._

_“And…Biology!” she jabbed the word on the crumpled paper with her finger._

_Shaw grinned and swiped the schedule back. “I thought I was the only sophomore in that class.”_

_Humming, Root tilted her head, hiding a smug smile behind her sandwich. “I’m full of surprises.”_

_“And a knowledge of Biology is one of them?”_

_She tipped her head the other way, pretending to think. “Oh, you know. Biology, Math, Computers. You name it. Some people say genius. I prefer prodigy.”_

_The way Shaw’s jaw dropped made Root snicker just a little. Shaw clicked her tongue in faux displeasure. “I didn’t know you were one of those people,” she teased, pretending to stand up and leave. “I think it’s time I-”_

_Her sentence cut short when Root’s hand jolted out to catch her arm. For a split second, her eyes flitted to where her hand was on her elbow. For a protesting gesture, it was surprisingly soft._

_“I was kidding,” Shaw reassured, slowly starting to lower herself back to the seat._

_A mischievous smile flashed in Root’s eyes. “Oh, I wasn’t stopping you,” she teased. “I just wanted you to know, before you go, that you can call me Root.”_

_Shaw’s mouth dropped open. Wow, you didn’t even ask her name. Moron._

_She laughed it off, however, rubbing at the back of her neck. “Shit. I mean, Shaw. I’m…Shaw.”_

_Root nodded_

_“I’ll see you around, Shaw.”_

_The glint in her eye told Shaw she wasn’t going to break that promise._

…

Shaw had quickly found out that her first impression of Root had been a skewed one. The girl wasn’t nearly as outgoing as she had been in that moment. She always kept to herself, never really went out of her way to talk to other people, and when she did it was always a forced politeness.

Not that anyone besides Shaw ever noticed the façade. She was a good actress, for what it was worth. It was just…different than when they were together.

They finished lunch and kept up casual conversation about their first few classes until the bell rang.

As they began walking to their next class, a small freshman came over, walking along on Root’s right side as she tried to stutter out her question.

“Uhh, S-samantha, right? Mrs. Bixler told me to ask you for help with algebra and…” She trailed off when Root didn’t even look back at her. The girl was so quiet, she got drowned out in the sea of voices to the point where Bear couldn’t even distinguish that Root was being addressed.

The freshman looked like she was going to cry.

Sighing, Shaw waved the girl closer to her. Hesitantly, the girl walked behind Root and toward her.

“Always stay on her left,” Shaw whispered as she moved to give the girl room to stand between them. “Her name is Root. Go ahead and start over.”

She slowed her pace to allow the girl even more space, but not before gently tapping Root’s shoulder for her attention.

Root glanced to her left, slightly taken aback by the change of person beside her, but she smiled none the less.

“R-oot?” The girl asked in confirmation.

She nodded. “What can I do for you?”

Shaw slowed her pace to give the two some privacy. For a loner, Root had such a way with people. It was like she could morph to whatever the situation called for.

Sometimes it made Shaw wonder if she morphed into something else when they interacted. It would be naive to think otherwise, wouldn’t it?

“Hey, little astronaut, you back to Earth with me?”

Shaw blinked. “Yeah. Sorry.”

“I’ll see you after school?”

Shaw nodded, shoving her hands in her pockets.

Root wrapped her arm around her shoulders, pulling her in for a half hug before guiding Bear down a different hallway.

…

Root climbed up the stairs to the rifle range, releasing Bear’s handle and letting him curl up by her spot on the couch. She hopped up onto the railing between the lounge and the range, balancing on it as she waited for the other kids to arrive.

“Did I hear trouble one and trouble two?” Shaw’s muffled voice drifted in from the armory. She stuck her head out, shoving a few more chips into her mouth.

Root shook her head. “You know you shouldn’t be eating!”

Shaw shrugged and leaned against the door frame, popping another chip in. “What’s one bad target the first day of school?”

Root tutted disapprovingly. “We’re supposed to be good examples for the team now, Sameen. Co-captains, remember?”

Shaw grinned and took a couple steps forward.

“Come on. Rebel with me.”

She extended the bag tauntingly, shaking it gently as she took a few more steps forward. Bear’s ears twitched at the sound.

Root jutted her chin out smugly. “You can’t seduce me with your junk food.”

Shaw’s face fell into a scowl. “Fine.”

“There are other ways, though.”

She blinked. What?

The confusion on her face must have been evident, for Root raised her eyebrows.

“To seduce me.”

Her clarification sunk in, and Shaw’s face hardened back into a glare. She pulled the chips back to herself, grumbling and walking over to the couch. “Ha, ha, very funny,” she muttered as she threw herself down, using the armrest as a pillow.

She barely got settled before the coach walked in, tossing her shooting glove at her. It hit her square in the face, and she groaned.

“C’mon, kid, get up here with your co-captain. Look semi-official for first practice.”

Root failed to hide her giggle.

“Yessir,” Shaw muttered, making a face at his back as she stood.

It made Root laugh just a little bit more, but she gently patted the railing beside her in encouragement. Shaw rolled her eyes and made her way over, choosing to stand behind the railing instead of sitting on it. Root’s still patting hand brushed against her knuckles, and reflexively she pulled just out of reach.

She couldn’t explain why, and a small ( _miniscule_ ) part of her kind of wanted to move her hand back where it was.

Beside her, Root stopped patting, folding her hands into her lap and kicking her feet listlessly as other kids began climbing the stairs to the range.

…

_“Hey, you.”_

_Root looked up from her book to see Shaw approaching from the east wing. She smiled and scooted over enough for the other girl to sit._

_“Hey, you,” she repeated back, mimicking the less than enthusiastic attempt Shaw had made._

_“What’s a girl like you doing by yourself on Activities Day?”_

_Root raised her eyebrows. “Nothing really interests me.”_

_Shaw nodded thoughtfully as she opened a protein bar from her backpack.  
_

_“Absolutely nothing, huh?”_

_Root shook her head, jotting a few more notes down in the book._

_“No sports?”_

_Root shook her head again distractedly._

_“No clubs at all?”_

_“Clubs usually involve groups of people.”_

_Shaw stifled a laugh. “That is what a club is, yeah.”_

_She took a bite of the bar as she thought._

_“Computer coding seems to be up your alley.”_

_“There’s not a club for that.”_

_“You don’t know until you look,” Shaw nodded toward the gym full of recruiting tables._

_Root looked at her out of the corner of her eye, trying not to smirk. This girl seemed much more…emphatic than usual._

_“You don’t want to go in there alone, huh?” she asked knowingly._

_Shaw scoffed. “I know no shame. I just figured we could both use some company.”_

_Root pressed her lips together as she thought, her eyebrows furrowing slightly._

_It was cute._

_Shaw shook the thought away. Lots of people were cute._

_“Fine. I will look with you. Just let me finish this,” Root allowed as she bent back over her the notebook._

_Shaw grinned triumphantly, ripping a piece of the bar from the wrapper with her teeth._

_They sat in silence for a moment as Root wrote. Shaw tapped her foot impatiently, looking around the empty hall._

_“So, what exactly is the dog for?” Shaw asked, trying and failing to cover her mouth as she chewed._

_Root smiled, tucking Bear a little further under her seat. “Hearing dog. I may be able to hear with one ear but sometimes sounds are one-sided. He’s here to alert me of any traffic I may miss. Or if I can’t tell someone called my name. He knows how to tell me. It’s mostly a safety precaution. Only thing they gave me.”_

_“Huh?”_

_“The gas tank in my old house leaked and no one noticed until it was too late. Explosion killed my parents, took the whole house. Took my hearing. Most of it anyway. I walked away with nothing.”_

_Shaw could see the bitterness in her eyes. Like she was sad but too angry to cry._

_“You walked away with your life.”_

_The humor deflection worked enough for Root to laugh a single time, half-heartedly at least. She hung her head and smile sadly down at her lap, or at Bear._

_“I’m sorry,” Shaw tried again._

_The apology sounded as flat as the emotion behind it. She really needed to learn how to at least pretend to empathize._

_“It’s okay,” Root cooed in a baby voice as she leaned down toward the dog. “I got you out of it, didn’t I buddy?”_

_He made a quiet whining sound in response, and she laughed, ruffling his fur behind both ears hard enough to jingle his collar._

_She smirked as she went back to writing. “Now I get a question.”_

_Shaw tipped her head to the side in a slight nod._

_“Fair.”_

_“What are you going in there to sign up for?”_

_Shaw grinned, the last piece of protein bar between her teeth. Tipping her head back, she let the bar drop into her mouth, chewing thoughtfully._

_“Rifle team.”_

_“Rifle team?”_

_She nodded firmly. “Rifle team.”_

_Root made a small “huh” sound as she closed her notebook and grabbed Bear’s lead. “You ready?”_

_Shaw crumpled the wrapper. “Are you?”_

_Reaching over with her free hand, Root patted Shaw’s hand a few times before standing._

_“I’m intrigued,” she admitted. “I’ve gotta see where this leads.”_


End file.
